Opening batsmen Dimuth Karunaratne followed up his first innings half-century with an unbeaten 99 in the second innings to put Sri Lanka A in a strong position in Durban. He was involved in a crucial 110-run opening partnership with Dilruwan Perera, who scored 51, to build on Sri Lanka A's first innings lead of 46 runs.

The day had started with the South Africa A side on 211 for 8. But Sri Lanka A's hopes of achieving a big lead were dented by an 82-run ninth wicket partnership between Wayne Parnell and Simon Harmer. By the time the stand was broken, Parnell had scored 70 - the top score in the innings.

However, when Sri Lanka came into bat for the second time, South Africa A bowlers struggled to make inroads. After a century opening stand, Karunaratne continued solidly and took Sri Lanka A past 200 putting Sri Lanka A in a position to square the two-match series.